Members of the hacker group Anonymous posted revealing pictures that they say are of BART spokesman Linton Johnson, who has spoken out against the hacktivist's group's planned protests against the transit agency.

Members of the hacker group Anonymous posted revealing pictures that they say are of BART spokesman Linton Johnson, who has spoken out against the hacktivist's group's planned protests against the transit agency.

The photos, posted to a Website broadcast via Anonymous on Twitter, show a black man that looks like Johnson with his pants partially down, together with other photos. At the bottom of the page, a phone number, purportedly for Johnson, is listed, together with a link to his Web site, where photos of his marriage to another man are posted. No one responded to a voice mail message left on the phone number.

"If you are going to be a d--- to the public, then Im sure you dont mind showing your d--- to the public.... Umad Bro? #Bartlulz" the message on the page states.

A spokesman for BART, the San Francisco transit system, told the SFWeekly that the photos were "illegal," as well as unethical.

On Wednesday, BART directors said they planned a new cell-phone policy in response to an Aug. 11 protest, itself a response to a July 11 protest of the shooting of Charles Hill at the Civic Center station in San Francisco. During the Aug. 11 protest, BART turned off underground cellular service to four stations. The organization owns the underground network equipment, and it has the power to, and did, turn off the wireless signals it provides for transit riders.

BART cited its concerns for the public's safety as justification for switching off the network. However, that didn't sit well with some citizens, including members of Anonymous, the online hacking group.

In a statement, the group pledged to keep organizing "OpBART" protests every Monday until its demands were met. Those included the firing of Johnson and BART chief Kenton Rainey, new training for all BART officers, a public apology for shutting down cell phone service, to remove guns from BART police, and to reopen the investigation into the death of Charles Hill.

"We are Anonymous, over the past two weeks we have proven that we stand by what we believe," the group said. "You have threatened to shut down cell phone service if needed again, although your threats went empty, the dictator like tactics did not go unnoticed by the world. BART police are becoming increasingly aggressive at the protest, and peaceful protesters are being arrested for 'being too loud'. We will continue to show the world why #OpBART is necessary."

About the Author

Mark Hachman Mark joined ExtremeTech in 2001 as the news editor, after rival CMP/United Media decided at the time that online news did not make sense in the new millennium.
Mark stumbled into his career after discovering that writing the great American novel did not pay a monthly salary, and that his other possible career choice, physics, require... See Full Bio

Get Our Best Stories!

This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.